Sunday, November 09, 2014

So by now you know how sceptical I am. Stories of the
Funtastic Dracula Carnival over the years have entered into the annals of
legend. Some of them may or may not have been picked up and been given urban
myth status. The blurry reality of the situation is that, as an event, what
might be considered hype is actually 150% for real. You really have to be there
because it’s about the big picture, the people perhaps even more than the
bands. So it came to pass that I actually got to attend. Some of the crew were
unable to get there this year but I did my very best to represent those that
were missing in action for whatever reason.

The FDC is exquisite and the fact that there just happen to
be some great bands and stellar DJ action to be had is just the icing on a
particularly yummilicious big sticky cake. I’d never been to Benidorm before
and it must be utter hell in the summer but the balance of elderly retirees and
the rock’n’roll folks makes for a pretty damn good chemistry. Like some kind of
Mediterranean Blackpool.

And let’s be clear about this, it is rock’n’roll. Of all
persuasions. You might not like all of the bands , all of the time but when
that happens you just step out on to the patio where there’s always music in
the air. When the bus that’s going to town is carrying kids wearing Ramones and
Hellacopters t-shirts then you realise you’ve made it to the right spot.

The venue was something else I’d heard about but took some
time to get to grips with just how unique it is. Between this and the curation,
there’s no way this could not be something else entirely. I think it sort of
blew my mind and I just wandered around wide-eyed for an hour or three. The
scepticism transfusion was complete by the wee small hours and I didn’t feel
like an interloper anymore. By the time The Autoramas came on I was fully
integrated into the vibe and they were fantastic. I don’t know what I expected
of them but it sure wasn’t what I got. Of all the combos I saw over the days,
these kids from Brazil could go furthest. They have the chemistry and the shapes
to send of the Food Fechters scurrying back under the stone where they belong. If
only there was a commodity along the lines of justice. Maybe a drawback is that
there aren’t too many songs in English but like in all good music, lyrics can
become an instrument irrespective of language. Their swinging pummel is utterly contagious.

To tell the truth, I was a little afraid to hear them on record
after this account but can happily report that they have captured whatever the
heck it is their peddling sonically. To see Flavia and to check out Bacalhau’s
wee dance though, you’ll have to go to a show and I can report that they’re
playing Hipsville this coming May here in the UK.

Day two started at Rockstar a downtown bar with several
aperatifs and the very wonderful Lord Rochester who dignified and diddley-fied
us with their presence. The assembled throng loved them and they set the bar
very high way before teatime.

Frannie and Ruth, being the foremost host and hostess took
me along for some tutti frutti ice cream on the beach front in Villajoyosa. It
was fitting that there was some TF in this episode as it took me back to the
Blue Whale speeding toward Madrid city limits with the Quattros in 2008.

Now that I was acclimatised it was time to get down to the
business of socialising. And due to the efforts of Steven Tagg-Randall, I can
keep the gig gab to the minimum and you can sample the musical goods at leisure.
All of the sets presented in glorious FUNTASTOVISION black and white and colour
for all you’re wishing you were there pleasure.

I’ll tackle the GT movie as a separate entity in due course.
It piqued the excitement of getting to see them for the first time in, I think,
18 years. Kurt maintains that the gig we saw in San Francisco was awful but my
memory serves me different. My defence is that Girl Trouble could never be less
than monumental but you know how these artistic types are. By the time they
were ready to go on stage I was wound up like a kid at Christmas. By the time
they were done, I was covered in and coughing up glitter in addition to being somewhat out off puff. As I
remarked to Bon earlier in the evening, I would have been happy just to keel
over in such hallowed company.

Exhaustive coverage of the event can be found at MagicPopcat. This in conjunction with Steven’s excellent videos would provide a fine Christmas getaway should you feel the
urge to escape to another world for a bit. Just hop on board the UFO that Ms
Paloma and Snr Varo curated.

“Spanish jetlag” is a known condition that is not caused by
actual time difference in relation to the regular body clock. SJ comes as a
result of special powers that manifest themselves as soon as you hit whatever
city in Spain you happen to be visiting. My previous bouts have been of the
Wurlitzer strain, a particularly agreeable way to run oneself into the ground.
FDC is likewise a place that would not be unlike my idea of heaven. Not one
obnoxious blowhard or drunk in sight, just kids of all ages raging against the
all-enveloping tide of shite that they have to deal with in everyday life rather than the light.

Doctors should fucking prescribe this as a treatment but be
warned, it’s not for lightweight. I have the added bonus of looking like one of
the retirees I mentioned earlier that cut about like The Banana Splits but by
night, the mutant stamina kicks in and it’s away we go. I like to think that Ralph
Kramden would be proud.

So now I’ve been bitten then I pledge allegiance to the
frat. Resistance is utterly futile.

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A wee bit of background, etc.

This all kicked off as a print (Xerox) magazine in 1977 and now it's on the interweb. Named after the title track on The Dictators Go Girl Crazy (40 years old in 2015) the purpose has always been to uphold what’s good and pure and right in terms of rock’n’roll and its satellites.

It has nothing, nada, nowt to do with any festival(s) that devalue our namesake so don't send mp3's or anything else with regard to setting course for a career in the music business or anywhere else.

Take a look at what goes on here and if you think your fare fits then drop a line and maybe we can work something out.

I plan to put PDFs of all physical issues up here eventually and in addition, all Rockin’ Bones, Watch This and Fuzzbuzz.Maybe Psychedelic Basement, etc from Sounds too so that everything is in one place. Some of the quality of the source material isn’t terribly good but it’s all I have to work with. It will take some time. The 3 page pilot issue, “NBT 0” from September 1976 never survived as far as I know. Some of the content is a wee bit embarrassing at this juncture but every journey has to start someplace, right?